Spitzer's Spacecraft Bus

Final Installation of the Spacecraft Harness Lockheed Martin

Spitzer's Spacecraft Bus is an octagonal structure in which the avionics and the science instrument warm electronics are housed. The Spacecraft Bus provides electrical power to the science instruments, orients and stabilizes the boresight of the telescope, collects and compresses data from the science instruments for later transmission to the ground, executes stored commands to direct science instrument activities, and communicates with the ground system.

The bus structure makes up the nine bays within which the bus equipment is housed. Four side modules, four corner modules, two heatpipe equipment panels, and six equipment panels make up the nine bays. The equipment panels are sandwiched between the modules and are bolted and bonded together for maximum stiffness and structural integrity. On the outside of the bays, panels are bolted to the modules. These panels are removable and provide access to the outer bays during integration and test. The center bay is accessible from the top.

Spacecraft Bus Structure

Interior of the Spacecraft Bus

The Spitzer Space Telescope is a NASA mission managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. This website is maintained by the Spitzer Science Center, located on the campus of the California Institute of Technology and part of NASA's Infrared Processing and Analysis Center.